Matt Willis vs. Outdated Entertainment Industry

Here’s evidence that music licensing laws are completely outdated. The movie Mr. Bean’s Holiday currently playing in theaters probably won’t win any Oscars but I believe that one of the title music tracks, “Crash” by Matt Willis is pretty good. I learned about it through a Mr. Bean video released on YouTube earlier this year and figured that I would purchase the song. Unfortunately, due to botched licensing agreements, there is no legal way to buy the song if you live in the United States. In the era of iPods, iPhones, and music enabled mobile devices, it’s absolutely absurd that these archaic geographic-based licensing agreements continue to exist.

Today, I tried to purchase “Crash” from iTunes, Amazon, Wippit, and Mercury Records (Matt Willis’ own record label!), and none would sell it to me. (And you wonder why illegal file sharing has a bright future?) The following are screenshots from my stymied shopping experience.

Can’t buy from Amazon…

Can’t buy from iTunes…

Can’t buy from Matt Willis’ own record label, Mercury Records!

Sorry, Matt Willis — I tried to buy your music but no one representing your interests would sell it to me. Bummer.